Tropical Storm Patty Has Cruises to the Bahamas on Watch

Update Saturday October 13 9:00am: Tropical Storm Patty has been downgraded to a tropical depression with maximum sustained winds of 35 mph.

Tropical Storm Patty has formed several hundred miles east of the Bahamas.  TS Patty currently has top winds of 40 mph and is moving south-southwest at 3 mph. The storm is expected to slowly move across the southern islands of the Bahamas this weekend.  Patty is the 16th named storm of the 2012 hurricane season.

Cruise lines have not made any changes to any cruises at this time.  The lines will be monitoring the storm and will make any changes necessary to keep the passengers and crew members safe.

Cruise Fever will also be monitoring Tropical Storm Patty and will update this page if there are any cruises affected by the storm.  Cruise lines rarely cancel cruises due to hurricanes and tropical storms.  When a storm is near, skipping or changing ports is common for the safety of the vessel and those on board.

The Bahamas are a popular cruise destination with Carnival, Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, and Disney owning their own private island among the 700 islands that make up the Bahamas.  The port of Nassau can hold as many as 6 cruise ships during the high season.

For the latest on Tropical Storm Patty, visit the National Hurricane Center.